Enable Passthrough for
a Network Device on a Host in the
vSphere Web Client

Passthrough
devices provide the means to use resources efficiently and improve performance
of your environment. You can enable DirectPath I/O passthrough for a network
device on a host.

Caution

If your
ESXi host is
configured to boot from a USB device or an SD card attached to a USB channel,
make sure that you do not enable DirectPath I/O passthrough for the USB
controller. Passing through a USB controller on an
ESXi host that
boots from a USB device or SD card might put the host in a state where its
configuration cannot be persisted.

Procedure

1

Browse to a host in the
vSphere Web Client navigator.

2

Click the
Manage tab, click
Settings.

3

In the Hardware section,
click
PCI
Devices.

4

To enable DirectPath I/O
passthrough for a PCI network device on the host, click
Edit.

A list of available
passthrough devices appears.

Icon

Description

green icon

A device is active and
can be enabled.

orange icon

The state of the
device has changed, and you must reboot the host before you can use the
device.

5

Select the network
device to be used for passthrough and click
OK.

The
selected PCI device appears in the table. Device information is displayed at
the bottom of the screen.